Imagine the joy of being able to fly
through the air with zero restrictions. Not as a bird and not within a plane,
but as a human with nothing more than a jet air pack strapped to your back. Just
think about the many advantages in combat: you could soar above enemies and
swoop down for an attack when they least expect it.
A machine like that would be
remarkable, provided that the FAA was given ample time to test, debug and
re-test the jetpack until it could be used safely. No one should be allowed to
control a device that will lead to their demise. If complete safety could not be
achieved, however, a simple warning label might be enough to urge consumers to
avoid flying through cramped environments.
But wait – it looks like someone has
gone ahead and released the jetpack ahead of schedule. Despite a product delay
last fall, the device is not quite user-ready. Looking at its potential, though,
you might be tempted to throw caution to the wind and take the next flight out
to the Bermuda Triangle (the only place where these jetpacks are found). But
should you?
Trying Something New
As you are surely aware, the
aforementioned jetpack comes from Dark Void – an action/flying game from Capcom
and Airtight Games. The idea is simple enough: take the Gears of War brand of
third-person shooting and merge it with a Boba Fett-approved jetpack. Toss in
Vertical Combat (a new way to battle enemies while climbing platforms) and the
ability to steal aircrafts while airborne and you’ve got a game with serious
jaw-dropping potential.
Dark Void is great at living up to
that potential in little ways. The first time you attack and destroy (or take
over) an alien ship will be exhilarating. The first time you gun down a few
cyborg alien creatures while hovering through the air will be amazing. Upon
dropping through the first near-bottomless shaft, you will be awestruck by the
sensation that comes with the fall – and feel your heart stop when you trigger
the jetpack at the very last second. Vertical Combat, which allows you to jump
up to platforms and hover under them to attack enemies while defying gravity, is
really impressive during your first climb.
Basically, Dark Void is great at
delivering memorable first-time experiences. The moments that follow, however,
might leave you feeling like you’ve fallen into one great big hole – a void, if
you will.
I know what you’re thinking: what are the
droid spacecrafts from The Phantom Menace doing in Dark Void?
Like Late-Night Comedy at 10pm
Love him or loathe him, Jay Leno has
millions of fans. But there’s a reason why NBC wants to move him away from
primetime: no matter how you look at it, late-night comedy makes more sense when
it’s aired late at night.
This game is weighed down by a
similar problem. Though you’d think that flying should be reserved for wide-open
spaces, Dark Void tells you to take off at 10p…uhh…when numerous barriers are in
the way. As a result, the game is much more complex – really, more frustrating –
than it ever had to be.
Mechanically, Dark Void is fairly
polished. The X button serves as the jump key (hold it down to boost; release it
to hover), while tapping the triangle button twice will launch into flying mode.
Stealing spacecrafts – there aren’t many, unfortunately – is as easy is pressing
the circle button when you encounter a ship. There’s a Simon Says-style
mini-game that follows, but it’s the same process every time: hold the circle
button until a part of the ship has been ripped apart, and flick the left
thumbstick to kill the pilot.
These mechanics only suffer when the
rest of the game is introduced, starting with the crowded environments. There
isn’t much fun in flying – or even hovering – through a vertical structure that
is too cramped to move through safely.
That, however, was not enough to
stop a diligent player like myself, one who looks for any opportunity to take
advantage of a game’s best features. When tall and narrow locations were too
painful to climb up or hover through, I’d look for the clearest path and attempt
to fly straight to the top. Eureka! Success!
Oh crap, what just happened to the
frame rate? Why has the screen locked up? Why is the camera obstructed? Why is
the game no longer seamless and exhilarating!?
To be clear, Dark Void is filled
with bugs that can attack at any time, including one that locked my character,
forced a reset and eliminated 40 minutes of game progress. Dropped frames,
though atrocious and inexcusable, are the least of your problems.
Vertical Combat seems cool at first, but once
you realize that its use requires you stand in
a specific spot below the designated platform and press the square button,
you won’t have any desire to continue using it.
Dark Void is a great concept. It
attempted many different things, and while none of them worked out successfully,
the game is still a thousand times more interesting than the average Gears of
War clone. That doesn’t remove any of the flaws or raise its status to a
“must-buy.” But you should play it once, if only to experience its incredible
potential – and the amazing game it almost was.
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Gameplay: 6
The generic Gears of War-style shooting is forgivable. But the countless
technical problems all but destroy a game that had the potential to be something
truly special.
Graphics: 5
How do you praise the visuals of a decent-looking game when the frame rate
tanks so frequently?
Sound: 5
The semi-bland music barely stands out, and though the voice-overs are not
as bad as they could have been, the word "overacting" easily comes to mind.
Difficulty: Easy/Medium
There may be intelligent life on other planets. But you won’t find any
within the Bermuda Triangle.
Concept: 7
This jetpack is a cool device with too many bugs.
Overall: 6
Dark Void can be summed up in just six words: so much potential, so much
disappointment.
